ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. - Since volunteers with Feeding Children Everywhere started working Friday, they have packaged more than 4 million meals for victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

At least 10,000 volunteers have given their time to help the effort, organizers said.

In all, they hope to send 4.4 million meals to Puerto Rico but are about 20,000 away, so volunteers are still needed, Feeding Children Everywhere spokeswoman Brooke Hemcher said.

Getting assistance to the island is critical right now, she said.

“As of right now, there still are over 80 percent of people that do not have power,” Hemcher said. “So, we know that each and every one of these 4.4 million meals is going to go to someone who needs it most.”

JoAnn Pulver brought her children to the Orange County Convention Center to volunteer Wednesday.

Seeing the effort, and being a part of it, was an emotional experience, she said.

“You see many people from all different backgrounds,” Pulver said. “This is the America that I believe it.”

Though the organization needs thousands more volunteers to finish packing the meals, Murry Meller believed it would get done.

“Children need to eat and we’re going to feed them,” he said. “And we’ll do our best here.”